How To: Carve a Tin Can Pumpkin

For times when you don't feel like dealing with all the goop, or just as an extra bit of spookiness...

MATERIALS NEEDED• can of pumpkin pie mix• box cutter• lamp cord/kit. We used the kind that goes inside a Dept. 56/Dickens Village ceramic house. These are readily found at craft shops and use an intermediate socket and a night light bulb — like you'd find on an old Christmas tree.• marker• tape

INSTRUCTIONS1 Open the can of pumpkin pie mix from the bottom and pour out the contents. If you don't want to waste it you can make a pie. Also, cats love pumpkin.2 Peel the label off, then wash and dry the can.3 With the can still upside-down, draw a jack-o'-lantern face on the can with a marker.4 Using a box cutter, cut out the face and an x on top of the can. 5 Peel open the x on top of the can and put the lamp cord through it. You should either use gloves, or pliers — even a stick — and just be careful not to cut your fingers. Sometimes the lamp cords will come with a little spring mechanism which fits into a hole. Otherwise, once the socket is through and the bulb is inside the can, close the x back around the cord. 6 Put the label back on the can — you'll need a piece of tape.7 Plug it in and turn off all the other lights. 8Happy Halloween!